


When Midnight Strikes

by AdriTriesToWrite



Category: Mozart l'Opéra Rock - Mozart/Baguian & Guirao
Genre: Crossdressing, Diane Dassigny's Constance, F/F, Fluff, M/M, Masked ball, brief Stephanie and Da Ponte appearance, really cute and soft, the Mozart siblings are a mood, vaguely inspired by Cinderella
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-17 07:43:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20617442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdriTriesToWrite/pseuds/AdriTriesToWrite
Summary: The Mozart siblings are runaways from their extremely demanding father of a high social rank, but they miss living it up at court, so they sneak into a masquerade. But, so that no one would recognize them, they dress as the opposite gender.





	When Midnight Strikes

Wolfgang looked out of the window. It was a bright and sunny day outside. And just so it happened, that inspiration struck him and so now, he was once again cooped up inside, writing down the most exquisite music. His sister Nannerl was outside, probably doing the groceries.

Ever since Wolfgang and Nannerl decided to run away from home, the atmosphere around them has been a lot calmer. They were the children of Leopold Mozart, one of the very respectable members of the royal court and with a father like him, it was no wonder that his children were always tense around him. Leopold kept on drilling Wolfgang music theory ever since he was practically able to walk and even though Nannerl was just as talented, her father refused to teach her, since he thought it would be “unbecoming in a young lady such as his daughter”. So, one day, the siblings agreed to run away.

Before they left, the two made sure they had a place to stay and enough money to live off of until they found a job of any sorts. So, they rented a little cottage in the nearby village square and under the veil of night, they crept away with only very few personal possessions.

The siblings now made money by performing at various local events, mainly parties, where they would get generously paid. However, every once in a while, the duo would miss their times at the royal court and the fineries of being a part of the high class. Which was why, when a masked ball was announced, the two immediately made up their minds to go.

But if they would arrive in their regular clothes, they would surely be recognized even with masks on. And then, their beloved father would surely lock them away somewhere under fifty locks and keys and they would never taste freedom again. So, the siblings decided that for a night, they would switch clothes.

Since the ball was two month away, the two made their own costumes by hand. Most of the work was done by Nannerl, but here and there, she let Wolfgang mend an edge or sew on a decoration, just so that he could both learn something and stop pestering her.

And after weeks of hard work, the two got all dressed up and proudly were painting on the last details on their faces. Nannerl wore a gorgeous blue jacket with a translucent cape covered in butterflies, a frilly white shirt (which she actually stole from Wolfie’s closet), a blue vest, pants and white stockings with more butterflies embroidered on and serving as substitute for the bows on her shoes. Her hair was tied into a low ponytail, as many men wore it and her blue tricone hat sat perched on her head. Her eyes smiled through the eye openings in the shimmering blue mask.

Wolfie on the other hand was still trying to get used to the hoopskirt his older sister outfitted him with. He didn’t realize just how uncomfortable and restricting these things were until he put one on. But for the sake of the newest fashion that was a must in the royal palace, he would survive a few hours. But aside from the hoopskirt, he loved the costume. It was a gorgeous white dress with tons of pastel lace and bows, sleeves with frills at his elbow and a unicorn mask with a lace veil, which was long enough to be a train. Nannerl even bought him a long blonde wig, which was also uncomfortable and itchy, but he did look like he could pass for a girl. And to complete the outfit, he even bought a pair of fancy heeled shoes.

The two kept on pestering each other in good fun until their carriage arrived. The mayor of their village thankfully was willing to borrow them the fanciest one he had along with a coachman with the promise that they must return by midnight. The siblings excitedly looked out through the windows at the late evening landscape and the castle grounds before their time to get out came. Just as they rehearsed, Wolfgang hooked his arm with Nannerl’s, lifted up his skirt and up the giant stairway to the castle they went.

The two slowly got to the castle and thanked god for this ball not being invitation only. Anybody who could afford a costume was there. The two at first walked around as a couple, but soon split up to pursue other masked guests. But before that, they also made sure that they could recognize their father’s costume, since he must have been here as well. Turns out that he didn’t really bother and just donned a black mask to his regular court suit and powdered wig.

“Who ends up with the cutest date at the end of this ball will win a special breakfast to bed tomorrow!” Nannerl bet her younger brother, who for the tenth time had to adjust his wig.

“Well then, get your wooing powers out, because no one resists Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, even when he is dressed as the opposite gender.” Wolfgang winked and gave a farewell hug to his sister.

“And remember to not get too homely, since we should be at home by midnight to return the carriage back to the mayor.” Nannerl booped her younger brother’s nose before parting ways.

* * *

Nannerl wandered through the ballroom and found a lonely girl sitting in the corner. She had beautiful curly honey blonde hair and was dressed in white with the mask of a swan. And Nannerl felt her heart thump immediately as she saw her.

“May I sit down next to you?” She asked the pretty girl, her voice revealing that she was a girl as well.

“Sure. For a second I thought you were a rare type of man that would actually flock to me instead of my sister, but you’re absolutely welcome to come sit and chat for a bit.” The girl replied and Nannerl plopped down next to her.

“About that bit with your sister: I think a man who would look past your beauty is the biggest idiot ever.” Nannerl paid her a compliment and smiled when she saw her cheeks turn pink.

“Then according to your philosophy, all those men are idiots.” She pointed to a far away flock of men, in the middle of which stood a tall and slim woman with her dark hair in an elegant hairdo, her pink dress being covered in a million sparkling rhinestones. She batted her long pink eyelashes at the many suitors and if anyone of them got too close, she’d smack him away gently with her fan.

“Wait…that’s Aloysia Weber, is it not?” Nannerl asked carefully. When Wolfgang was in his early teens, their father wanted him to get engaged to this girl, who was a rapidly rising opera star. The two did have a bit of a romance, but when Leopold got himself involved, trying to force her poor young brother to propose to her, their relationship quickly died out. The last time Wolfie saw her, Aloysia screamed that she hated him on his way out of the room.

“Yes, the grandest diva of them all.” The girl said in a mocking tone. “And next to you sits her little sister Constance.”

“Pleasure to know your name at last. My name’s Maria Anna, but you can just call me Nannerl.” The two shook hands and prepared to talk for hours on end, remembering everything about their partner for the evening.

* * *

At the other end of the room, Wolfie was trying to shoo away any of the sleazy courtiers that were trying to hook him up. Here and there, there was an occasional cute young one sprinkled among them and to those, if they were polite, Wolfie would smile. But now, he understood why Nannerl was always weary to go to balls. These men would go after anything that wore a hoopskirt and a long wig and not mind.

After getting rid of the gentlemen, he scooted himself over the punch table and poured himself a full glass of the alcohol-infused beverage. He downed about half of it in one go, saving his other half for later. And just then, he noticed a lonely man haunting the shadows.

The man was certainly a courtier or someone who frequented the royal court, considering by his fine embroidered grey jacket and elegant posture. He was rather tall, had long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail and a short beard of the same color. Behind the black lace covered mask he wore hid a pair of brown eyes that absentmindedly hovered around the various guests in the ballroom. And suddenly, those eyes fell on Wolfgang.

Ashamed of being caught staring, Wolfie lowered his gaze into his punch. But then, he decided to go for it. After all, he was in a mask and nobody could recognize him here. He would have to speak in a higher tone, but it would be just for a few hours.

“Excuse me, sir, but I notice you looked quite lonely, so I came to ask you if you’d appreciate my company, since I am feeling quite lonely myself.” Wolfgang said in the sweetest voice, curtseying politely.

The dark and handsome stranger just blankly stared at him for a couple of seconds before he gently nodded and gave a little bow. He then offered Wolfgang a spot next to his seat on the sofa and Wolfie gladly accepted.

A minute or so went by without either of them saying a word when two courtiers came by. The younger of them was dressed as a parrot catcher in a multi-colored coat and the older one apparently didn’t bother with a costume and just wore a brown suit with a matching mask.

“Well, well, Salieri,” the younger spoke teasingly “did the forever alone court composer finally find a lady of equally matching entertainment?”

“Piss off, Stephanie.” Salieri said in a menacing voice and the two courtiers immediately distanced themselves. “Sorry about those two, but as soon as Gottlieb Stephanie gets just a drop of alcohol into himself, he becomes unbearable.”

“So, you’re Salieri, the famed court composer, huh?” Wolfgang heard so much about Salieri that he thought this man was as ancient as the stars, but turns out, this man was just a few years older than himself. Before he ran away, his father really wanted Wolfgang to take Salieri on as a rival, but now that they’ve met, he was sure he couldn’t go against him.

“Yes, you are sitting right next to a heap of disappointment. Pleasure to meet you.” Salieri said in a melancholic tone. There surely must be a way to lift this man’s spirits, Wolfgang thought. Maybe a white lie or two wouldn’t hurt.

“Well, if I were you, I wouldn’t put myself down like that. I’m a big fan of your music and I find it absolutely charming.” Wolfie said, full well knowing that he had very minimal knowledge of Salieri’s music, but he desperately needed to boost this poor composer’s confidence. “And I find you quite charming as well.”

In that moment, he saw Salieri’s cheeks go red and he knew he was successful. Across the room, he saw Nannerl conversing with a pretty lady dressed in white. Suddenly, the orchestra began playing a sweet little tune and the two girls across the room rose up to dance. Wolfie would like to dance as well, but if he waited for Salieri to ask him for a dance, they would be out here waiting until they died before he would get the guts. So, just this once, the strict court protocol had to be broken.

“Salieri, would you like to dance with me?” Wolfgang asked shyly and his partner just nodded. The two strode to the dance floor hand in hand and stood right next to Nannerl and her pretty swan-dressed companion.

“I must warn you, I am a rotten bad dancer.” Salieri said as he carefully laid his hand onto Wolfgang’s waist. A spark flew in between them and they started to sway slowly.

One dance merged into multiple and the two couples were soon both exhausted, so the Mozart siblings led and got led by their partners into the garden.

* * *

Nannerl and Constance stopped by the fountain, placing flowers they picked onto the still water’s surface. The air was fresh and fireflies flew around.

“Thank you for such an amazing evening.” Constance thanked her companion. “Were it not for you, I would once again be sitting bored in that one corner that was starting to catch my shadow onto the wallpaper.”

“No, thank you for being the best companion ever.” Nannerl kneeled in front of her and caught a stray hair from getting into Stanzi’s eyes and tucked it behind her ear. But once her hand was there, it skimmed her cheek and feather light fingertips went along the soft jawline. A second hand soon joined and cupped her round blushing cheeks. The two hesitated for a second, but when they saw in each other’s eyes that the other didn’t mind, they lent in and pressed their lips together.

They parted for air after a while and when they caught their breaths, they dove in once again. Hands dove into hair and Constance’s swan mask almost fell into the water, but thanks to Nannerl’s quick reflexes, the paper mache swan stayed out of harm’s way. Suddenly, the bell began to toll midnight.

“Thanks for catching it, Nannerl. It’s borrowed, so I don’t know if it would exactly be appreciated if I returned it damaged.” Constance thanked with a sweet smile.

“Wait…It’s midnight.” A sudden realization hit Nannerl. “Oh, goddamn it! The mayor will surely have both mine and Wolfie’s head. I must go!”

“Wait a minute.” Constance quickly caught Nannerl by the arm. “Who is Wolfie?” She said, jealousy coating her sweet voice.

“It’s a long story, but I must go!” Nannerl tore out of her lover’s grip and ran. After a moment of silent contemplation, Constance followed her as quickly as possible.

* * *

At the other end of the garden, Wolfgang was thinking of ideas how he could get through to Salieri’s heart. They were sitting in a little secret hideout Salieri lead him to and the ivy of which looked strangely familliar and progressively, Wolfie sneaked his hand closer and closer to Salieri’s.

He knew that he originally planned for this night to be solely for flirting with the courtiers while having a grand old time, but Salieri’s reserved nature and contemplative silence were something he and his heart weren’t prepared for. He also had to admit that Salieri was quite a looker, but that was not important in this moment.

Finally, their hands were close enough so that they could touch and although Salieri didn’t majorly react to their fingertips touching, Wolfgang saw that little smile which appeared on his face.

“I used to come here often when I was little.” The court composer suddenly started “This used to be my secret hide out. Here, I could have been whoever I wanted to.” A soft chuckle escaped his lips. “I had this playmate of sorts. He was from one of the most elite families at court while my parents were the lowest of the court classes. We’d always meet here and pretend to be anybody and anywhere we wanted. If were were pirates, then the vines would be the sea rising in waves. But we most often pretended to be composers. Famous ones. He was a real talent while I sometimes needed help. And he always told me: One day, when both of us are older, we will compose the grandest operas together and never leave eachother. And then, we grew up. And he suddenly disappeared. Everybody said that he fully dove into his studies. And a few months ago I learnt that he ran away. Left me here alone in my gilded cage.” Salieri’s voice gained on a melancholic tone. “That blonde twit would have been much better of a court composer than me.”

A memory suddenly resurfaced in Wolfie’s mind. That of him playing with a boy named Antonio, who was a few years his senior, climbing benches and writing musical masterpieces. The appearance certainly did match: kinda lanky and awkward, dark brown hair, brown eyes and a beauty mark on his left cheek. Except the years did do him some service. He was taller and thinner; but his movements and posture matured into elegant stiffness, which was so required at court.

Wolfgang at that moment wanted to tear off that stupid wig so much and tell Antonio that it was indeed him and that he returned. But that would be probably too much to handle for the shy man that Salieri was. So instead, he slowly took Antonio’s hand in his own, their fingers entwining. The two slowly leant into one another, their foreheads touching. Their lips almost touched as well, but the loud banging of the clocktower bell startled them.

“Oh goddamn it.” Wolfie said. “Nannerl will murder me in cold blood.” He quickly pulled close a startled Antonio, pecked him on the mouth, lifted his hoopskirt to stand up, took his unicorn mask into his embrace and ran. Antonio sat there for another few startled moments, touching his mouth where that sweet and tantalizing creature kissed him. He couldn’t let that ethereal being just escape like that.

* * *

Nannerl and Wolfgang met up at the entrance to the gardens, running through the halls as quickly as possible. In their hurry, the two suddenly bumped into someone, making them both fall onto the ground. Wolfgang almost wanted to loudly curse, but when he looked up, that want quickly vanished. Staring down at them was their father.

“For future reference, lady and sir, please try and not display such improper behavior the next time you come to this court. Miss, if you’ll let me help you get up.” Their father said and Nannerl already automatically flinched, but Leopold’s hand went out to help Wolfgang. Both siblings let out an internal sigh of relief.

As soon as both of them were up on their feet, they quickly bowed and curtseyed respectively and swiftly walked away. Just as the two disappeared from Leopold’s view, a ball of white lace and bows topped with a paper mache swan head ran past him and right behind that woman ran Salieri, the court composer. Leopold just chuckled. Who would have thought that the ever so proper Salieri could behave like a love struck idiot?

The Mozart siblings were almost at the carriage. They just needed to get down that one extremely steep set of stairs. They tried running, but that just resulted in Wolfie falling onto his behind and sliding down a few steps. Nannerl rushed to her brother, but he was fine and only the dress took a bit of harm. They started going down again when Wolfie felt dampness on the bottom of his right stocking. He lifted the hoopskirt just to find one of his shoes gone. Said shoe sat few steps above, glittering in the moonlight. He almost wanted to run back for it, but Salieri and Nannerl’s friend appeared on top of the stairs.

“Oh, to hell with the shoe.” Wolfie muttered and started running down the stairs again. Nannerl was already waiting with the carriage door open when Wolfgang jumped from the last step.

“Wait, your shoe!” Salieri yelled, the shoe Wolfgang wore in his hands. The two siblings forced themselves quickly into the carriage.

“Keep it, Antonio!” Wolfgang shouted as the carriage started to move. Just as he ducked back into the carriage, an idea sparked in his head. He took Nannerl by the leg and forced off her left shoe. He leant out, throwing the shoe behind. He saw it land next to the feet of Nannerl’s date and just as he was about to duck back in, a twig caught into his flowing wig and tore it off.

“The losses were worth it.” Wolfie commented as he fell down onto the cushioned bench. “I think that today, it was a tie. Both mine and your dates were cuties.”

Back at the stairs, Salieri and Stanzi stood each with a shoe in hand. “Do you know the insignia that was on that carriage door?” Salieri carefully asked.

“Sure I do. That’s the emblem of the nearest village. It can only be used by the mayor in this way and Nannerl told me that the mayor would be mad at them, so I guess they borrowed it.” Constance deduced.

“Wait, did you just say Nannerl?” Antonio startled. All the signs pointed in the same direction. The conclusion was wild, but oh so satisfying.

“Yes, that was her name. Why are you asking?” Stanzi inquired. “Do you perhaps know where she’s from or what her last name is?”

“Back when I was a kid, I used to play with the son of a high ranking courtier. He was the only person, who ever called me Antonio instead of Salieri. And he often liked to talk to me of his older sister Nannerl. So when I heard my companion call me by my first name from the carriage, I was somewhat certain who it was. What proved me right was that wig slipping off.” Salieri said.

“Who was it, Salieri? I need to know!”

“That was Mozart.”

“Wait, you don’t mean…THAT Mozart?” Constance gasped.

“Exactly that one.” Antonio answered while gazing dreamily after the carriage.

* * *

Back home, Wolfgang and Nannerl tiredly shut the doors to their little cottage. Thankfully, the mayor was understanding enough, so they didn’t get scolded.

“Damn, this was the best night of my life.” Wolfgang said as he kicked away the hoopskirt. “Too bad it is over already.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure that there will soon be another ball. But now, give me back the dress, because this needs to get washed tomorrow.”

Before Wolfgang could start to try getting out of the dress, the sound of horse hooves sounded from the outside and a loud knocking onto their front door soon followed.

“Who could that be in the middle of the night?” Nannerl sighed and scooted herself over to the door. Just as she slowly cracked it open, a giant ball of white bows and lace flew at her, knocking her onto the floor. Wolfie quickly ran over, the skirt he still wore trailing far behind him without it’s supportive underskirt. The ball of while turned out to be Nannerl’s companion from the ball, who was now hugging and kissing his big sister. And on the other side of the door stood Antonio.

“Long time no see, Wolfgang.” He said, gently smiling. From under his coat, he pulled out Wolfie’s lost shoe. “I think you might be missing something." 


End file.
